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Damon Lindelof
| birth_place = Teaneck, New Jersey, U.S. | occupation = Screenwriter, producer | spouse = | children = 1 }} Damon Laurence Lindelof (born April 24, 1973) is an American screenwriter, comic book writer, and producer. He was the co-creator and showrunner of the television series Lost (2004–10). He has written for and produced Crossing Jordan (2001–04) and wrote for Nash Bridges (2000–01). Lindelof also co-wrote the science fiction films Cowboys & Aliens (2011), Prometheus (2012), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), and Tomorrowland (2015). He co-created the TV series The Leftovers for HBO, adapted from the novel by Tom Perrotta. Early life and education Lindelof was born in Teaneck, New Jersey, the son of Susan Klausner, a teacher, and David Lindelof, a bank manager. He attended Teaneck High School, a school whose diverse student body he credits with expanding his horizons as a writer. Lindelof's mother is Jewish, whereas his father was of Scandinavian descent. Variety Magazine: "Abrams keeps it all in the fan family - J.J. and his collaborators conquer Hollywood" By Cynthia Littleton October 16, 2009 |''"We’re all self-deprecating short Jews, with the exception of Bob Orci”''Jewish Journal: "Jews Get Geek on at Comic-Con" by Adam Wills July 22, 2009 Lindelof celebrated his Bar Mitzvah in Teaneck, where he attended synagogue for the Sabbath; he has stated, "I was a Jewish white kid growing up in Teaneck, but at the same time, I had African and Filipino and Asian friends and to have that experience all through high school while getting an awesome education was wonderful." Lindelof attended film school at New York University, performing briefly in the band Petting Zoo, and moved to Los Angeles after graduating. Career Collaborators Lindelof frequently collaborates with a tightly knit group of film professionals which include J.J. Abrams, Adam Horowitz, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Edward Kitsis, Andre Nemec, Josh Appelbaum, Jeff Pinkner, and Bryan Burk. Early career An early boost to his writing career came in 1999, when he was selected as a semifinalist for a Nicholl Fellowship for his screenplay Perfectionists. Before this, he had worked on reviewing scripts at Paramount, Fox, and Alan Ladd studios. ''Lost'' He was an executive producer and joint showrunner (alongside Carlton Cuse) on Lost. Lindelof and the Lost writing staff won the Writers Guild of America (WGA) Award for Best Dramatic Series at the February 2006 ceremony for their work on the first and second seasons. He was nominated for the WGA Award for Best Dramatic Series a further three times. At the February 2007 ceremony for his work on the second and third seasons, at the February 2009 ceremony for his work on the fourth season and at the February 2010 ceremony for his work on the fifth season. Lindelof and his co-writer Drew Goddard were also nominated for the WGA Award for Best Episodic Drama at the February 2008 ceremony for writing the episode "Flashes Before Your Eyes." Lost was praised for its unique brand of storytelling and strong characters. The first two seasons of the show were ratings juggernauts and the show never fell out of the top 30 throughout its six seasons on the air. Lindelof and co-show-runner Carlton Cuse have been heralded as two of the first to truly embrace the changing times with things such as their daily podcast and being active in the fan community. A majority of the six seasons were met with critical praise, however, both Lindelof and Cuse were not afraid to address critiques on the show, be it through the podcast or other forms of media. However, Lindelof said in late 2013 that he would no longer be addressing those displeased with the way the show ended stating, "And what do I do? I jump at the opportunity to acknowledge how many people were dissatisfied with how it ended. I try to be self-deprecating and witty when I do this, but that's an elaborate (or obvious?) defense mechanism to let people know I'm fully aware of the elephant in the room and I'm perfectly fine with it sitting down on my face and shitting all over me... And here's my part: I will finally stop talking about it. I'm not doing this because I feel entitled or above it — I'm doing it because I accept that I will not change hearts nor minds. I will not convince you they weren't dead the whole time, nor resent you for believing they were despite my infinite declarations otherwise." Other projects Comics Lindelof is the writer of the six issue comic book miniseries Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk for Marvel Comics, which takes place in the Ultimate Marvel universe. It began publication in January 2006. Production was suspended after the second issue in February 2006 due to Lindelof's heavy workload elsewhere. The last of the scripts was submitted to Marvel in 2008 and the series resumed publication in March 2009. Lindelof wrote a Rip Hunter story for Time Warp No. 1 (May 2013) which was drawn by Jeff Lemire and published by Vertigo. Film Following the end of Lost, it was rumored that Lindelof and J. J. Abrams would write and direct a film adaptation of Stephen King's The Dark Tower series. Lindelof dismissed in a Q&A with USA Today in late 2009. He commented, "After working six years on Lost, the last thing I want to do is spend the next seven years adapting one of my favorite books of all time. I'm such a massive Stephen King fan that I'm terrified of screwing it up. I'd do anything to see those movies written by someone else. My guess is they will get made because they're so incredible. But not by me." He served as co-producer on the 2009 film, Star Trek. He produced its sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness and cowrote its screenplay with Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. Kurtzman and Orci, with Lindelof, and several other writers contributed to the screenplay of the film version of the comic book series Cowboys & Aliens. He cowrote Ridley Scott's Prometheus, released in June 2012. In 2012, he co-wrote the screenplay for Tomorrowland with director Brad Bird, based on a story by Lindelof, Bird and Jeff Jensen. Television Lindelof was featured on a December 2008 episode of The Write Environment, a public television series featuring in-depth, candid one-on-one interviews with some of TV's most prolific and well-known series creator and writers.The interview is also available on DVD. In 2011, Lindelof aided in development of Once Upon a Time, which was created by former Lost writers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. He was not officially credited in the pilot. In 2013, Lindelof co-created the HBO series The Leftovers with Tom Perrotta, based on Perrotta's eponymous novel. He also served as showrunner and executive producer throughout the show's three seasons. ''Lost'' episodes (as writer) *"Pilot: Parts 1 and 2" (1x01 & 1x02, with J.J. Abrams and Jeffrey Lieber) *"Tabula Rasa" (1x03) *"Confidence Man" (1x08) *"Whatever the Case May Be" (1x12 with Jennifer M. Johnson) *"Homecoming" (1x15) *"Deus Ex Machina" (1x19 with Carlton Cuse) *"Exodus" (1x23, 1x24, & 1x25 with Carlton Cuse) *"Man of Science, Man of Faith" (2x01) *"...And Found" (2x05 with Carlton Cuse) *"The Other 48 Days" (2x07 with Carlton Cuse) *"The 23rd Psalm" (2x10 with Carlton Cuse) *"One of Them" (2x14 with Carlton Cuse) *"Lockdown" (2x17 with Carlton Cuse) *"?" (2x21 with Carlton Cuse) *"Live Together, Die Alone" (2x23 & 2x24 with Carlton Cuse) *"A Tale of Two Cities" (3x01 with J.J. Abrams) *"I Do" (3x06 with Carlton Cuse) *"Flashes Before Your Eyes" (3x08 with Drew Goddard) *"Enter 77" (3x11 with Carlton Cuse) *"Left Behind" (3x15 with Elizabeth Sarnoff) *"The Brig" (3x19 with Carlton Cuse) *"Through the Looking Glass" (3x22 & 3x23 with Carlton Cuse) *"The Beginning of the End" (4x01 with Carlton Cuse) *"The Constant" (4x05 with Carlton Cuse) *"There's No Place Like Home" (4x12, 4x13, & 4x14 with Carlton Cuse) *"Because You Left" (5x01 with Carlton Cuse) *"316" (5x06 with Carlton Cuse) *"The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" (5x07 with Carlton Cuse) *"Whatever Happened, Happened" (5x11 with Carlton Cuse) *"The Incident" (5x16 & 5x17 with Carlton Cuse) *"LA X" (6x01 & 6x02 with Carlton Cuse) *"Lighthouse" (6x05 with Carlton Cuse) *"Happily Ever After" (6x11 with Carlton Cuse) *"Across the Sea" (6x15 with Carlton Cuse) *"The End" (6x17 & 6x18 with Carlton Cuse) Personal life Lindelof is a self-professed Stephen King fan and has placed many references to King's work into Lost, as well as mentioning within the Official Lost Podcast that The Stand serves as a huge influence. Lindelof has been quoted as saying that the graphic novel Watchmen, written by Alan Moore, is the greatest piece of popular fiction ever produced, and its effect on Lost is evident many times in the show. He has also mentioned David Lynch's Twin Peaks as a big influence for Lost. J.J. Abrams has often cited Patrick McGoohan's similarly allegorical sci-fi/spy series The Prisoner as another major influence on Lost. Lindelof lists his favorite six films, in no particular order, as Touch of Evil, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Pulp Fiction, The Shining, Bambi, and The Godfather Part II. Lindelof is also a fan of the television series The Wire, Breaking Bad, and Battlestar Galactica. Lindelof married Heidi Mary Fugeman in 2005; the couple have one child. Twitter Lindelof has been the subject of controversy over his various tweets on his Twitter account for being outspoken on his reactions to various movies like The Dark Knight Rises and defending the mixed response to the ending of the show Lost. Lindelof deleted his Twitter account on October 14, 2013 the date of "the departure" on his then-upcoming HBO show, The Leftovers. Lindelof stopped his final tweet in mid-sentence leaving his followers to wonder in regards to the significance. Lindelof's final tweet read, "After much thought and deliberation, I've decided t." Lindelof later said that he felt as though his time on Twitter was consuming him in a negative fashion and that he has no intentions of returning to the site. Production credits References External links * *Damon Lindelof interviews, March 28, July 17, and August 21, 2005, LostTV-Forum.com *Damon Lindelof podcast, Marvel.com *Entertainment Weekly May 4, 2011 interview Category:1973 births Category:American entertainment industry businesspeople Category:American film producers Category:American screenwriters Category:American television producers Category:American television writers Category:American people of Jewish descent Category:American people of Scandinavian descent Category:Living people Category:Tisch School of the Arts alumni Category:People from Teaneck, New Jersey Category:Writers Guild of America Award winners Category:Showrunners Category:Writers from New Jersey Category:Television writers